SOMETIMES, if your plant is healthy & growing well, you can manipulate the plant's growth habit by cutting a thin notch out of the bark (all the way through to the cambium) above a living leaf or a leaf bundle scar. A growth regular that flows downward from the top of the tree toward the roots (auxin) inhibits lateral breaks (branching). By cutting a notch above a living leaf or a leaf bundle scar, you disrupt the downward flow, and thus the suppressive effects, of auxin. The end result, if things go according to plan, is the emergence of a new BRANCH from a latent bud in the leaf axil (crotch) or above the leaf bundle scar. Timing of the attempt (where the plant is in its growth cycle) and how healthy the plant is has a lot to do with the likelihood of success; and for some reason, plants predisposed to a lot of adventitious or aerial root growth seem to be more likely to respond to the attempt - which would include F elastica.